A kaleidoscope of colours fills the Barberton skyline

BARBERTON – The Barberton skyline was awash with colour this week as paragliders competed in this year’s edition of the annual Barberton Paragliding Nationals. The competition was held over seven days from June 16 to the 22nd and did not include any rest days.
Participating pilots descended on the town in their brightly coloured parachutes, and locals supported the event by watching the pilots land at the Barberton Golf Club.

Barberton has cemented a reputation as the ideal winter flying site for paragliding enthusiasts and has hosted a number of South Africa paragliding nationals.

ALSO READ: WATCH: Marimba band has audience begging for more

Competitors followed a predetermined route from the Makhonjwa Mountains launch site along the valley towards Agnes Mine once they attained lift. The ground crew were on hand to ensure that there were no accidents, and recorded the flights which would determine this year’s winners in the different categories.

The Barberton Community Tourism (BCT) marketing manager, Astrid Christianson was full of praise for the oganisers and the role players who provided essential services such as transporting the pilots to and from the mountain.

ALSO READ: Pumas demolished by determined Griquas

“I would like to thank Willie de Klerk (non-flying organiser) and Anton Naudé, who were instrumental in making this year’s competition a tremendous success,” she said.

Although no competitive flying took place on Saturday, the winners of the competition were announced at a prize-giving ceremony at Jathira Guesthouse. Following a moment of silence for Chris Hersov, who died in a paragliding accident at God’s Window in Graskop on Tuesday, the winners were announced.